AKZONOBEL LAUNCHES PIONEERING INITIATIVE TO ACCELERATE CARBON REDUCTION IN THE PAINTS AND COATINGS INDUSTRY

The multinational AkzoNobel has launched a pioneering initiative aimed at collectively accelerating carbon reduction in the paints and coatings industry. To achieve that initiative, the company has invited partners from across the value chain to participate in its collaborative sustainability challenge, a new ‘Paint the Future’ initiative that aims to develop a shared approach to tackling climate change.

The 24-hour event will be held in May and will involve senior executives and next-generation leaders from a select group of partners, including suppliers and customers, who will participate in open discussions in a non-confidential environment.

Specifically, topics to be addressed include energy transition: inspire partners towards decarbonization processes and transition to renewable energy sources, process efficiency: increase the efficiency of material use and reduce the energy required to apply and cure paints and coatings, solvent emissions – Reduce the amount of solvents emitted along our entire value chain, as well as circular solutions: increase the use of circular solutions in paints and coatings, both upstream and downstream.

In this regard, AkzoNobel CEO Thierry Vanlancker believes that “successfully addressing the impact of climate change is everyone’s responsibility. Having set science-based sustainability targets to halve our carbon emissions across the value chain by 2030, we are fully committed to achieving them. However, we know that the only way we can achieve that ambition, and play our part in limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, is to work with our partners.”

On the other hand, Klaas Kruithof, AkzoNobel’s chief technology officer further states that “there are unprecedented challenges that we must all overcome. Achieving this will require collaborative innovation across the industry. We want to challenge ourselves and our partners to collectively identify opportunities in the areas we will discuss, resulting in one true winner: our planet.”

The next Collaborative Sustainability Challenge will focus on the success of Paint the Future, and is scheduled to take place in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, May 17-18, 2022.